UK inflation rises to 1.8% spurred by weak pound and rising fuel costs

Production costs jump 20% in a year as pound's sharp fall following Brexit vote ramps up imports bill just as oil prices start to bite

A surge in fuel prices helped push inflation to its highest level for more than two years last month and economists warned of more prices pressures as the Brexit blow to the pound ramped up firms' costs.

The Office for National Statistics said inflation rose to 1.8% in January from 1.6% in December and was the highest since June 2014. But it was slightly less than expected, as falling clothes prices offset some of the upward pressure on inflation from fuel and food.

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